From a Kingdom to an Empire — Social Science STD 6 — Question

The Kalinga war was the turning point of Ashoka's life. The war was devastating and Kalinga was destroyed completely. Ashoka himself was horrified when he witnessed the bloodshed. More than one lakh people were killed. After realizing the consequences of war, Ashoka gave up warfare and his policy of conquest. He embraced Buddhism and swore he would rule and conquer by dhamma, the prakrit word for dharma.